Real lives don’t always fit neatly into the traditional coaching or counselling experience. The complicated relationship we have with our internal struggles and our external lives therefore needs a different approach.
I know from personal experience that being a mum, having a miscarriage, a hip replacement, supporting elderly parents and dealing with the grief of losing both in 18 months had an impact on my mental health, my perspective on life and my career. Whilst counselling was supportive, it did not provide the forward momentum and focus I needed when I started to consider “what next” after a career break.
I know from my experience supporting individuals at points of transition in their career that it was rarely the surface level that was the real issue, it was the “what’s really going on”. This is where feelings and emotions had a massive part to play and the stories that we tell ourselves about our abilities.
I knew when I set up my own business, I wanted to support clients both practically and emotionally.
So, what difference does it make integrating Coaching and Therapy?
When I started my training as a Career Coach I was completely thrown when a client started discussing aspects of their personal life and deep emotions that were having a considerable impact on their ability to focus on the future and their career. This fell outside my professional and ethical boundaries at the time, and we decided to take a break before picking up at a later date. But it didn’t feel right.
After this, I just knew that clients needed to be understood, to feel safe and supported if mental health or personal issues were thrown into the mix. This is when I discovered the unique course offered by the University of East London – MSc in Integrated Counselling and Coaching. This BACP accredited course teaches a framework called Personal Consultancy which enables practitioners to work seamlessly with clients toward change, establishing new patterns of behaviour and ways of being. Knowing when to use the right approaches is vital.
Attending a CPD event on Mental Health Coaching with the Association of Coaching last year it was clear many coaches are not comfortable or equipped to support clients in this area. Although, many coaches are now adding therapeutic techniques to their skill set and training is being developed to satisfy a growing demand.
Case Study
Last year one of my client’s was at a crossroads and doubting their abilities about their career and expertise, despite on the surface appearing extremely confident and well qualified in their field. One of their internal blockers was the inability to engage in any planning process. It became apparent that this was not due to capability but experiences in their early life. Eventually we were able to make sense of how specific situations had resulted in a difficulty in envisioning the future – and the impact this had had on their career. Without working at depth and being comfortable dealing with prior mental health issues and early life conditioning it would have been difficult to create lasting change. Knowing my approach, they felt safe bringing up these issues early in the process.
Their response to this approach: “You have such a warm and easy manner and it really helped to pick things apart and then put them back together in a way that was super helpful and never felt invasive! Thank you so much for all of your help!”
As identified in a recent BACP article Coaching Comes of Age “Integrating the two provides an authentic and ethical way to work at emotional depth and be able to sit with the process when needed but also inject forward momentum and open the horizons for the future when it is appropriate.” [1] Our emotional mental health isn’t separate from our working lives.
In simple terms working this way ensures that clients feel safe and supported whatever issues they bring into a session, nothing is off the table.
Why is integration needed now more than ever?
This isn’t just about individuals, it’s about the environments we work in, the society and world we live in. Constantly navigating changing and challenging circumstances. According to a Yale study in 2021 “our society is experiencing more stress than ever before leading to both negative psychiatric and physical outcomes. [2]
Lucy Myers, the Chair of BACP Coaching believes new ways of working are “evolving to meet the new needs arising from the challenges of recent years – the pandemic, globalization, issues around diversity, equity and inclusion, the conversations that need to be had inside and outside organisations, and the normalisation of talking about mental health issues.”
Recent research shows that in the 21st Century world of work 41% of senior leaders are stressed, 36% are exhausted (Deloitte 2022) [3] and burnout is increasing (Gallup 2021) [4]. This is a far cry from my college essay in 1983 when the development of technology was predicted to increase the amount of leisure time we would have in the future!
According to the World Health Organisation, risks to mental health at work can include:
- excessive workloads and understaffing
- long, unsocial, or inflexible hours
- lack of control over workload
- limited support from colleagues
- violence, harassment or bullying
- discrimination and exclusion
- unclear job roles
- under or over promotion
- job insecurity, inadequate pay
- poor investment in career development
- conflicting home/work demands
There are organisations who are making headway addressing these issues, supporting wellbeing, and creating safe psychological places to work, but there is a long way to go.
This new way of working helps individuals to navigate the real issues they are experiencing: a human, whole person approach.
